Scooter Libby Conviction

[ahwahoo2006]

All politics is dirty, and it is not just contained to the left or right side of the fence.

[Scalliwag]

Some is dirtier than others. It is definately at best a case of hoping for the lesser of the evils. But just like I pointed out with the nazis, some are much more evil than others. We do have things called the constitution and the bill of rights and if tomorrow Bush came out and said straight out that he was suspending both he would still have a 20% approval rating. There is a faction of really messed up people in our society and his supporters are amongst them.

Back when Clinton was in office Senator Jesse Helms NC said that if Clinton visited his state he better wear a flac jacket. Imagine if a Dem senator said that about GW? Repubs can be as vile and criminal as they come and still remain popular in their party. G. Gordon Liddy was a Watergate criminal and has no regrets ..... he has his own talk show. Oliver North oversaw the sale of missiles to a terrorist country, lied to congress and destroyed evidence... but repubs love him.

[jonny_lech]

Now if we want to use numbers let's try this. Bush has received over 1000 requests for commutations. He has only issued as of now 4. If anything that does not look good. He said that the jail sentence was too harsh. Hmmmm... the numbers show that the average jail time in similar cases was 64 months. Libby received 30.

I think if you're convicted of perjury, you ought to do the full time. The commutation was dirty. But one point which I have not heard refuted which was made in favor of it was that no one has yet been charged with a crime from the focus of the investigation. The investigation was to find out if someone broke the law in revealing Plame's identity. But as of yet, that charge has not been filed. Criminal sentences are to be reflective of the nature of the crime. A perfect example of this would be the case of the preacher's wife who murdered her husband. The term she was given was considered low, but the sentence is to be relative to the nature of the crime. That's why statutes are written with an often pretty variable range of penalty. Most of the time, when perjury is committed, it is to cover up another crime. But as of yet, that hasn't been proven. A more accurate metric would be the conviction term when a crime has not been proven as a result of the process to which perjury was made. Should someone be charged, then 64 months would be spot on. But until then, one cannot say.

[Scalliwag]

Well, it was a criminal investigation. The nature of the way her name was revealed was what could make it a crime or not. Basically because the law is so vague just because you outed a covert agent was not neccesarily a crime.
Keep in mind the entire administration acted as though they did not know shit. No one came forward and said "it was me". A reporter was jailed because they stonewalled.
Even when Fitzgerald found out Armitage was the first leaker he could not be sure of that. Libby is a lawyer. He knew exactly what he was doing. He even knew what to expect. Unlike Clinton who had a surprise series of questions about Monica Lewinsky. He should not have lied either. But which lie would be more expected? A lie about sex or a lie about outing a CIA agent?

Valerie Plame held covert status at the time she was outed. I have heard repubs say over and over she was not covert publicly. So even publicly repubs love to throw smoke screens. Valerie Plame testified under oath she was covert. CIA records show she was. So it was not at all obvious that no laws were broken. TO me it is still not that clear because Bush's people lie just to hear themselves lie.
Today they report that Gonzales was given 6 CIA reports showing they were breaking civil rights laws a week before he testified before congress and said there were zero reports any such thing happened.
Maybe if the administration would tell the truth early and often for a change things would be a lot different. But since they are not then they reap what they sow.